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Prove Me Wrong: International Women's Day Activity




As March is the time when women are celebrated, you can rund one or several of these across this month:

  1. Women and work: myths vs reality
  2. Media images of women: who decides what we see?
  3. Invisible work, invisible power: unpaid care and housework
  4. Girls and education around the world
  5. Everyday sexism: is it still a problem?
  6. Men as allies: what is their role on Women's Day?

What I would like to suggest, though, is a more structured activity that involves plenty of speaking, namely:

Provocative Statements for "Prove Me Wrong"
(or a version of the popular meme CHANGE MY MIND)

How can you go about it?

- Why don’t you try this Lesson Procedure:

1. Warm-up (5 minutes)

  1. Quick whole-class question: "What comes to your mind when you hear 'International Women's Day'?"
  2. Collect 5–6 key words on the board (rights, equality, flowers, protests, respect, etc.)

2. Group Work (10–15 minutes)

  1. Put students in groups of 3–4
  2. Give each group one statement (or let them draw one)
  3. They discuss and prepare their "prove me wrong" arguments and their improved version of the statement

3. Mini-Presentations (10–15 minutes)

  1. Each group presents for 1–2 minutes
  2. After each presentation, allow one short question or challenge from another group: "Can you give another example?" or "Is this true for all countries?"

4. Reflection (5 minutes)

  1. Students individually finish the sentence: "One idea about women and gender I see differently after this activity is..."
  2. Optional: collect anonymous answers and read a few aloud

Statement ideas:

Set A – Stereotypes and Roles

  1. "In most families, women naturally take care of the home better than men."
  2. "Men are better leaders; women are better helpers."
  3. "Feminism is no longer necessary in the 21st century."
  4. "If a woman is successful, it's mainly because someone 'helped' her."

Set B – Work and Pay

  1. "The gender pay gap is exaggerated by the media."
  2. "Women choose lower-paid jobs, so it's normal they earn less."
  3. "If women wanted to be in STEM, they would just apply."
  4. "It's easier for women to get promoted now than for men."

Set C – Daily Life and Media

  1. "Sexist jokes are harmless fun; people should stop overreacting."
  2. "Social media gives women complete control over their image."
  3. "If a woman posts photos online, she must accept any comments."
  4. "Fashion and beauty standards are the same pressure for men and women."

Student Task Sheet: 
Task: Prove Me Wrong – International Women's Day

  1. In your group, you will receive one statement about women, men or gender roles.
  2. Step 1: Decide if you agree, disagree, or think "it depends".
  3. Step 2: Your main job is to prove the statement wrong or show why it is too simple.
  4. Use:
    1. examples from real life or your country
    2. things you have seen online or in the news
    3. data or facts you know (even approximate)
    4. personal experiences or stories (if you feel comfortable)
  5. Prepare a short mini-speech (about 1–2 minutes) where one or two people from your group explain:
    1. what the statement says
    2. why it is wrong / incomplete
    3. what a more accurate, fair statement would be
  6. While you listen to other groups, take notes: one argument you agree with and one question you would like to ask

Extra Teacher Notes: 

Classroom management tip: Establish ground rules before starting – respectful disagreement, no personal attacks, challenge ideas not people.

Sensitive topics: Be prepared for students who may share personal experiences with discrimination. Have a plan for how to acknowledge these respectfully while keeping the discussion focused on language practice.

Cultural context: Some statements may resonate differently depending on your students' cultural backgrounds. This is valuable – encourage students to compare perspectives across cultures.


Just a side note, hope you don’t mind......

If you like my content, maybe you would like to support me and buy me coffee?

Also, you might want to check other materials I create for the English Bilingual Secondary Classes (C1) - I am sure some of them will be useful for the English B HL classes, for example BritSpeak or OpenBookCouples. 

Check out the shop at dwujezycznie.pl




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